I have been researching relentlessly to find a tent (aluminum poles, full fly, sturdy enough to handle the winds, blah blah). Most friends say it doesn't matter what tent you get, it's all about putting it under a shade structure. I have heard good things about spring bar but they are out of my price range (looking to spend under $200 on a tent).

I have also read about people putting tarps over their tents? Is this effective? Also people using space sheets around the outside of the tents as well?

Louise and I don't put our shade over our tent, but we aren't in the tent during the day. We've got some shade articles here:
http://www.cieux.com/bm/bmtoc.html#abodesbut none very recent. They tell you how to make several different styles of shade.

We bought a shade set up online - we got a silver tarp, two side flaps, and all the bungie cords, then bought the poles at our local hardware store (it uses cyclone fence top rails cut to particular sizes).

We also made our own shade from scratch from rubberized canvas, fabric pieces, and EMT tubing (yeah, EMT tubing is like Rio Grand River, but if you don't know, you need to know it's tubing).

To get good answers here, you need to tell people any limitations you have in transport. Our longest poles are 10 feet long cyclone fence poles. Can you carry those? What about six feet of EMT? Or PVC. Have you got space for a huge tarp folded into a large cube?

Tents need to be sturdy. My first year I camped in a large coleman tent. It was one of those you can stand up in. The wind literally flattened it to the ground at times. It was beyond repair at the end of the event. My 3 season tent I now use is short and tough. Basically if you put the tent up and can lean on it and it gives easily then it is probably not tough enough for the playa. If there is good resistance and it can hold a bit of weight applied to it then it should hold up.

Look at shade geeks over on tribe for some shade ideas.

Black Rock City Welding and Repair. The Night Time Warming Station.

Card Carrying Member BRCCP.

When you pass the 4th "bridge out!" sign; the flaming death is all yours.-Knowmad-

Most people with tents use the run-of-the-mill cheap variety. They mostly work okay if you pitch them downwind of your vehicle(s). If it's your first time, don't sweat it, just bring sturdy stakes and extra cord to secure the tent you have. Look around at what your neighbors do and take notes for next time.

I'd go with a $20 tent and a $200 shade structure, like the carports you get at the warehouse stores or auto parts stores. We actually use two with camo netting stretched between them, and without one of the sets of legs on (reduces wind profile). Here's a super-fast timelapse of us setting them up.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rg-BZPYVceU[/youtube]
Since we started this method, we've had zero structural failures of any kind. We've been doing it this way for 4 or 5 years.

Note that both sides need to be staked down thoroughly. We use rope tensioners and big-ass rebar crucifixes. Another advantage of leaving one set of legs off is that the legs come down at a perfect angle to run the guy wires parallel to them, reducing trip and toe injury hazard. Apart from dehydration, rebar injuries are the number one reason for med-tent visits.

“We cross our bridges when we come to them and burn them behind us, with nothing to show for our progress except a memory of the smell of smoke, and a presumption that once our eyes watered.”

I was there today and saw only two on the floor in boxes. There was no sample and I didn't see anyone to ask if there were more in back. I don't think there is a "back" at Costco. They were $187 I think and FUCKING HEAVY! It's at least a two (strong) person carrying job. Unfortunately there was no information on the box giving a peak height measurement. Since I couldn't move the box more than a few inches...I couldn't find out anything else for my own situation. I thought I would share the info with y'all in case someone else can use one.

They're 10X20 by about 10 ft at the peak. Our method the height is about 7 ft. With all 8 legs they weigh around 90lb, with four removed more like 80. Not impossible for one person to carry (stand it up, lay it across your shoulder balanced), but certainly easier with two. A minimum of 3 people are required for the final step of setup (getting the legs under it), but the rest can be done by one person provided lenient winds.

The legs are 8 feet long, though, so most vehicles can't fit them inside. We roll our legs up in the ground cover (billboard vinyl) and strap them.

“We cross our bridges when we come to them and burn them behind us, with nothing to show for our progress except a memory of the smell of smoke, and a presumption that once our eyes watered.”

like people have been saying, dont spend too much money on a tent. worry more about shade in your camp to hang out in during the day. if you're crafty Monkey Huts work great, there's lots of info on those on eplaya. you can also find good used canopies and carports (10X10 or 10X20) on craigslist for $100-150.

I second the north pole party tent. It weighs a lot but it's manageable. It has a 30 foot footprint. It's the shape of a tee pee kinda. My sister put a 3 man tent inside it and had no wind issues (well not with the tent! LOL), she even used regular tent stakes. For the NPPT stakes - We used rebar stakes pounded all the way the fuck in. Some were candy caned, but a veteran burner gave us some rebar deer tent stakes. They were great! About 18 inches long and easy to drive all-the-way-in. That shade structure is awesome. If you are a savvy shopper you can find one on Ebay for about $100.

I have used an REI Alcove shade structure with the windwalls for four years now at BM and it does great every year (even in the horrible winds of 2007 and 2008). Under that I would skip the tent and just set up a nice air mattress and your living/cooking/ eating area. I think the Alcoves and the windwalls run about $150 for the whole thing. Put a cheap rug on the ground and be sure to hold down your structure with 1-3 foot rebar stakes.